Academy/Community Management Companies
Extra charges
Learn what the base management fee typically leaves out, so you can compare proposals on real cost, not just the headline number.
A management company's base fee rarely covers everything. Common extras billed separately include postage and certified mail for notices, per-letter enforcement charges, document fees for resale certificates and estoppel letters, capital project oversight fees, after-hours emergency calls, and technology fees for homeowner portals. Ask for the full fee schedule before comparing proposals on price alone.
What counts as an extra
The monthly or per-door fee a board signs is the base management fee. It covers the manager's core duties: financial administration, meeting support, and maintenance coordination. It does not automatically cover every task the manager performs over a year.
Which specific tasks are bundled into the base fee versus billed as an extra varies by management company and by the individual contract. The same task can be free with one firm and a line item with another. The fee schedule attached to the contract is the only reliable answer, not the sales brochure.
Where extras usually show up
A handful of categories account for most of the surprise line items on an HOA invoice.
"printing and postage for mailed notices, certified mail handling, election mailings, and bulk mailing admin charges"
Source: HOA Management Fees: Cost, Inclusions and Extra Charges, RowCal
| Category | What triggers the charge |
|---|---|
| Mail and printing | Certified mail, election mailings, bulk notice runs |
| Enforcement | Per violation letter sent and per hearing attended |
| Documents | Resale certificates, lender questionnaires, estoppel letters; rush fees for expedited processing are standard |
| Capital projects | Oversight billed as a percentage of project cost or an hourly rate |
| After hours | Emergency calls outside normal business hours |
| Technology | Homeowner portal or software access |
A resale certificate or an estoppel letter is almost always a separate document fee, not part of the monthly rate, and rush processing typically costs more.
How to keep extras from becoming a surprise
Ask the management company for a complete, itemized fee schedule before signing, not after the first invoice with a charge nobody expected. Read every line, including the ones that look like they will rarely apply.
When comparing two proposals, price out the extras each firm is likely to bill given your community's actual size and activity, not just the headline base fee. A lower base fee attached to a long, aggressive extras list can end up costing more over a year than a higher base fee with fewer add-ons.
Check yourself
Answer before you read the explanation, recalling it is what makes it stick.
A buyer's lender requests a resale certificate for a unit going under contract. What should the board expect?
After a rule enforcement push, the board is surprised by a $600 charge on the invoice. What likely happened?
The association budgets for a roof replacement the manager will oversee. Which billing approach matches common practice?
- HOA Management Fees: Cost, Inclusions and Extra Charges, RowCal
- Tips for Evaluating a Management Proposal, Keystone Property Management
Community Management Companies
See how the base fee itself is usually structured in Management fees, then build your own comparison checklist in Management RFPs.
Which tasks count as an extra versus included in the base fee, and how much each extra costs, varies by management company and by the specific contract you sign.